Last year around this time, I decided to begin an experiment: to match everything I spend on a non-essential purchase with an equal donation to an effective charity
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Re: so what percentage was it?ext_384563January 10 2011, 02:39:00 UTC
Thanks for the reply. Thanks for sharing that info as well - afterwards I thought it might be a bit too personal. It's great to see it working so well for you and enabling you to give so much.
I agree that it would be interesting to think about the rules, but I guess when I made my pledge with GWWC I wouldn't have thought about the commitment as being about adhering to rules. There's a bigger discussion in there about motivation I think. There's a discussion board for GWWC members where I recall some talk about what gets people to sign up - I'll have a look soon (or I guess you can have a look soon!) for an overview.
I don't think I agree that in every other method (we'd need to define them all really) giving and enjoyment are opposed. I certainly don't feel that way about giving. In fact, for me it is simply a logical argument for giving. A very small change in my income can have a large impact on other people's lives. Personal enjoyment isn't part of those thoughts.
It's great to get people to address what they consider essential or not, but i still don't think the offset rule works for everyone regardless of income - i think for people on lower incomes, it is probably easier to track a percentage than to keep track of what you spend on non-essentials while also making sure you have enough reserve to match your spending. Whereas with a percentage you can always put that into your budget and know it's not available for other uses.
I'm sure Toby or someone there will get back to you soon. And then you'll get a lovely postal letter.
I agree that it would be interesting to think about the rules, but I guess when I made my pledge with GWWC I wouldn't have thought about the commitment as being about adhering to rules. There's a bigger discussion in there about motivation I think. There's a discussion board for GWWC members where I recall some talk about what gets people to sign up - I'll have a look soon (or I guess you can have a look soon!) for an overview.
I don't think I agree that in every other method (we'd need to define them all really) giving and enjoyment are opposed. I certainly don't feel that way about giving. In fact, for me it is simply a logical argument for giving. A very small change in my income can have a large impact on other people's lives. Personal enjoyment isn't part of those thoughts.
It's great to get people to address what they consider essential or not, but i still don't think the offset rule works for everyone regardless of income - i think for people on lower incomes, it is probably easier to track a percentage than to keep track of what you spend on non-essentials while also making sure you have enough reserve to match your spending. Whereas with a percentage you can always put that into your budget and know it's not available for other uses.
I'm sure Toby or someone there will get back to you soon. And then you'll get a lovely postal letter.
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